draper



F. W. DHAPER.

AUTOMATIC PEDAL FOR PlAYEFIYfilF-QQS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 31,1913.

1 1 94,282. Patented Aug. 8, 1916.

2 SHEETSSHEET I.

Bnneutor Yunc w when (Ittornegs F. W. DRAPER.

AUTOMATIC PEDAL FOR PLAYER PIANOS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 3I, I913.

1 1 94,282 Patented Aug. 8, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

I IIIIII I I! I II To ache w'mck Chis Snventor r I W n v atiornegs UN TED sr Es PATENT OFFICE.

FRANCIS w. DRAPER, or RICHMOND, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR TO STARR PIANO COMPANY, or RICHMOND, INDIANA, A CORPORATION or INDIANA.

Aurom rIC PEDAL roa PLAYER-PIANOS.

specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 8, 1916.

Application filed l'uly Bl, 1918. Serial No. 782,303.

To all whom it may concern: g

Be it known that I, FRANCIS W.'DR PER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Richmond, in the County of Wayne and State of Indiana, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Pedals for Player-Pianos; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to player pianos and has for an object to provide a device for automatically actuating the loud pedal to be controlled from an opening in the tracker bar and registering opening in the music sheet. I

A further object of the invention is to provide manual control whereby the loud pedal action maybe thrown into or out of operative condition. -A further object of the invention. is to provide improved pneumaticmeans for actuating the loud pedal.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved primaryfor control- I ling the pneumatic.

With these and other objects in view the invention comprises certain novel constructions, combinations and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully de scribed and claimed.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a conventional view of a player piano with the front removed showing the pedal actuating mechanism. Fig. 2 is a view of the pedal actuating pneumatic in side elevation with the primary and manual valve shown relative thereto. Fig. 3 is a sectional view through the pedal actuating pneumatic. Fig. 4 is a view of the primary in side elevation. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the pri mary. Fig. 6 is a view of the manual valve 'in end elevation. Fig. 7 is a view of the views.

The improved pedal actuating mechanism which forms the subject matter of this application is adapted to be associated with a player piano of substantially the usual and ordinary type employing a rod 10 for raising the dampers, such rod being actuated by the manual pedal in the usual'manner. The

movable wall 12 connected through the me dium of the link 13 with a lever 14 which is, in-turn engaged under a clip 15 rigidly secured to'the rod 10 so that when the movable wall 12 of the pneumatic 11 is depressed the rod 10 is raised as will be apparent from Fig. 2.

To depress the movable wall 12 the pneumatic 11 is mounted upon a two-part block 16 in whose upper part is an L-shaped passage 17 communicating with said pneumatic 11, and in whose lower part is a second L-shaped passage 18 which in turn communicates with a second pneumatic 19 sup ported by in contact with the under side of the block 16. The pneumatic 19 is in communication by means of the pipe 20 with any usual exhaust chamber so that it is under constant exhaust, such exhaust communicating also with the.passage 18. Between the passages 17 and 18 is mounted a valve 21 for convenience comprising a cylinder with upper spider 22 and lower spider 23 so that said valve is adapted to engage at its opposite ends against either of said spiders 22 and 23 to close the port in either direction; The spider 23 forms communication between the passages 17 and 18 while the spider 22 forms communication to the atmosphere through a depression 24 formed in and opening out one side of the lower part of the block 16. It is apparent, therefore, that as the valve 21 is either up or down the passage 17 and the pneumatic 11 are respectively in communication with the chamber 18 under exhaust or the atmosphere. To raise the'valve 21 a pouch 25 is provided engaging against a head 26 carried by the valve 21, and a conduit 27 communicating with the pouch. As the passage 18 is under throwing the passages 17 and 18 into com- 105 munication. When this occursthc rarefied condition existing in the pneumatic 19 and passage 18 is communicated to the chamber 17 and pneumatic 11 whereby the pneumatic 11 is exhausted and the atmospheric pressure upon the exterior of the movable wall 12 depresses such wall to raise the rod 10.

The block 16 carries a nipple 28 and the movable wall of the pneumatic 19 carries a device 29 constituting a cap or cover member so that when the movable wall of the pneumatic 19 is raised communication with the exhaust is interrupted. A spring 30 IS employed to move the movable wall of the pneumatic 19 against the pressure of the external air. The pouch 25 is made slightly porous so that the rarefied condition within the pneumatic 19 is quickly relieved and the tension of the spring 30 is sufficient to overcome the atmospheric pressure upon the movable wall when the member 29 is seated against the nipple 28. Under ordinary playing conditions when the valve 21 is at its downward limit the exhaust will cause the pneumatic 19 to collapse to close the member 29 against the nipple 28, but the leakage through the pouch 25 and other parts will cause the pneumatic to move slightly so that the movable wall of the pneumatic will vibrate slightly when the valve 21'is closed but will remain substantially closed at all times. \Vhen the valve 21 is raised the air in the pneumatic 11 and passage 17 to a considerable extent relieves the tension in the pneumatic 19 and the pneumatic 19 suddenly opens to its limit or nearly so whereby the exhaust from the conduit 20 is assisted not requiring as great-a draft from the exhaust chest as though the said exhaust was connected directly to the pneumatic 11.--In other Words the pneumatic 19 serves as a reservoir to take from the exhaust chest a limited amount of energy at all times which is equalized whenever the loud pedal is to be operated by the spring 30 operating the pneumatic 19.

To admit air to the pouch 25 through the conduit 27 a primary 31 is employed, the conduit- 27 communicating with a passage 32 to the atmosphere controlled bya valve 33. It will be apparent that when the valve 33 is raised atmospheric air passing through the conduit 27 enters the pouch chamber to raise the ouch 25. To raise the valve 33 a head 34 is provided in position to be engaged by a pouch 35 all within a chamber 36, such chamber communicating through the conduit 37 with any exhaust chamber preferably though not necessarily the action windchest. A conduit 38 communicates with an opening in the tracker bar so that when the conduit 38 is opened admitting atmospheric air under the pouch 35 such pouch is thereby raised to raise the valve 33 and admit air through the conduit 27 under the pouch 25.

At some convenient point in the conduit 38 a manual valve is introduced, such valve being a turning plug 39 controlled by a crank l0 so that by manually turning the turning plug 39 the conduit 38 may be opened or closed so that the device may be automatically actuated or not as the operator may choose. It will be apparent then that when a music sheet perforation registers with the proper perforation in the tracker bar atmospheric air will be admitted through the conduit 38 under the pouch 35 to raise the valve 33, which in turn admits atmospheric air through the conduit 27 to raise the pouch 25 and thereby raise the valve 21 to close communication between the chamber 17 and the atmosphere and throw such chamber 17 into communication with the exhaust chamber 18 whereby the pneumatic 11 is exhausted, such exhaust being equalized and the pneumatic 19 and the loud pedal rod thereby actuated through the medium of the lever 14. It is apparent that as soon as the orifice in the tracker bar has been closed by the music sheet the pouch 35 will drop permitting the valve 33 to close, cutting off atmospheric communication under the pouch 25, and permitting the valve 21 to rise, throwing the chamber 17 and pneumatic 11 into communication with the atmosphere, permitting such pneumatic 11 to expand and drop the rod 10. The pneumatic 19 will also be gradually closed by the exhaust through the conduit 20.

I claim:

1. In a player piano, a plurality of pneumatics, a block separating the pneumatics, constituting mounting means therefor, and provided with a bore and a depression communicating with the atmosphere and surrounding the upper portion of the bore, and with a passage extending laterally from the bore and communicating with one of the pneumatics, said block having a second passage corrimunicating with the lower end of the bore and with the other pneumatic, a depression being provided in the wall of the passage last-mentioned in alinement with the bore, a conduit connected with said depression, a pouch covering the depression, and a valve located in the bore and operated by the movement of the pouch.

2. In a player piano, the combination of two pneumatics connected by a conduit, a valve in the conduit, having a head, means including a porous pouch contacting with the head, a conduit leading from the pouch for communicating with a tracker bar, a pipe opening into one of the pneumatics from a source of exhaust, means for closing the pipe upon closing the pneumatic, said means comprising a tubular member rigidly mounted and communicating with the pipe and a device rigid with the movable portion of the pneumatic last mentioned and ada ted to contact with the end of the tubu ar member and close the latter.

3. In a player piano, an actuating pneumatic, a pneumatic reservoir, a conduit connecting the reservoir with a source of exhaust; a nipple rigidly mounted within the reservoir at the inner end of said conduit, a member rigid with the movable Wall of the reservoir, adapted to close said nipple, a second conduit providing communication between the pneumatics, a valve in the last mentioned conduit, adapted to normally 10 close the latter and out off one pneumatic from the exhaust, a porous pouch for operating the valve, and means including a con lult leading from the pouch for (JOIIIIHUIU' eating with a. tracker bar.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

FRANCIS XV. DRAPER. lVitnesses PEARL DRAPER, LEONA B. ASHE. 

